THE building of a second Mersey crossing has received huge support from the public.

The construction, which will be the UK's biggest civil engineering project of the 21st Century, would be welcomed by 96% of people questioned in a survey.

If everything goes according to plan, the bridge could be open to traffic by the end of 2007 - 15 years after the idea was first seriously discussed.

Council chiefs say the objectives of the new bridge will be to:

* Relieve traffic on the Silver Jubilee Bridge;

* Maximise development potential;

* Improve public transport links across the river;

* Encourage the increased use of cycling and walking.

The preferred route - known as 3a - addresses all these objectives in that it will attract up to 90% of traffic from the Silver Jubilee Bridge and offer good connections to the Central Expressway in Runcorn and Ditton Roundabout in Widnes.

Consultancy firm Gifford and Partners claims more than 96% of people feel the need for a new crossing is urgent and the majority agree on the route.

Cllr Tony McDermott, leader of Halton Borough Council and chairman of the Mersey Crossing Group, said: 'This is another major step towards the realisation of a new Mersey crossing.

'The situation with the existing Silver Jubilee Bridge is now dire, with any slight disruption to traffic flow having huge impacts on the region as a whole.

'Built with a capacity of 60,000 vehicles in mind, the bridge currently takes more than 80,000 vehicles per day and has already been widened twice - so we have nowhere left to go with it.

'The decisions of both the Mersey Crossing Group and the borough council were unanimously in favour of route 3a based on the outcomes of all the studies.'

Ian Hunt, a director of Gifford and Partners, said: 'This route is good value for money and the economic assessment shows that it has tremendous potential for creating new employment opportunities.'

Cllr Rob Polhill, the council's executive board member for planning and transportation, added: 'The existing bridge is already well over its capacity in terms of vehicle numbers and when you consider this is the only river crossing between the Mersey tunnels and Warrington, its regional significance should not be underestimated.'

Further studies will now take place to ascertain the exact design of the bridge and the impact it will have on the environment.

Initial plans suggest it will be a two-lane dual carriageway with hard shoulders enabling widening at some time in the future.

Claire Price, spokesman for the North West AA, welcomed the decision.

She said: 'This can only be good news because this is usually a congested area and the existing bridge has more than its fair share of congestion and accidents to make it a motorists' nightmare.'

Cllr McDermott said: 'The next stage is to submit a detailed funding application to the Department of Transport, which will happen in July, followed by a formal planning application.

'The Government will hope-fully make a decision in December of this year and there will probably be a public inquiry into the planning application, due to its scale, early in 2004.

'If all goes well, it should be possible for work to start early in 2005, with it being open to traffic by the end of 2007.'